Welcome to another edition of our newsletter. This week we look ahead to the finale of the European Tour, cast our eye over the best wedge for distance control, and also show you some of the best golfing holidays on offer this winter.

Enjoy the read.

Fitting news

Are your wedges correct for you?

Wedges come in various grinds (sole shape) and bounces (sole curvature), these are mostly adapted to the conditions you usually play in (soft or dry) and which club you tend to use most out of bunkers. Having this fully explained by myself and taking these things into consideration will no doubt help your short game.

Club gapping is particularly important in wedges, just because there is a consistent degree gap between your wedges, doesn’t mean that yardage gap will be consistent or desirable. This often happens in higher lofts where trajectory and spin becomes too high (especially in strikes high in the face), resulting in a weak, short and high shot.

The European Tour will be hoping to match the excitement of the PGA Tour’s finale, with the Race to Dubai close to reaching its season-ending climax. Fresh from their exploits in the Ryder Cup, the ‘Moliwood’ pairing of Francesco Molinari and Tommy Fleetwood are busy occupying the top two spots, with Molinari holding a 1.4 million point lead over Fleetwood, who triumphed in the Race to Dubai last year.

Also in contention are Patrick Reed and Rory McIlroy, with the former looking to prove that his Ryder Cup display is well and truly forgotten. Reed will be more at home in the arid conditions than he was at Le Golf National, so he could be one to keep an eye on. It should be a great ending to what has been a memorable season.

Rules update

A bone of contention for golfers...

Double hitting is a bone of contention for golfers, as it can be difficult to tell when a playing partner has hit the ball twice. The current rule for double hitting (14-4) states that if a player strikes the ball more than once during a stroke, the player must count the stroke and add a penalty stroke for two strokes altogether.

However, with the new rules of golf coming into play on 1st January 2019, Rule 10.1a will state that if the player’s club accidentally hits the ball more than once during a single stroke, there will be no penalty. This is down to the fact that as the double hit was not the intention of the player, it was deemed unfair for the player to be penalised.

Totally bunkers!

The proposed changes to the Rules of Golf are less than three months away so we thought we'd look at one introduction which will put your mind at ease when you find yourself in a tricky situation within a bunker...

You may not be aware but under the current ruling, you cannot take relief outside the bunker once you've already made an attempt to play the ball from inside. However, under the proposed changes (19.3b), and for two penalty strokes, you will have the additional option of taking relief outside the bunker by dropping a ball back on the line from the hole through where your ball was at rest in the bunker. Phew.

The proposed changes to the Rules of Golf are less than three months away so we thought we'd look at one introduction which will put your mind at ease when you find yourself in a tricky situation within a bunker...

You may not be aware but under the current ruling, you cannot take relief outside the bunker once you've already made an attempt to play the ball from inside. However, under the proposed changes (19.3b), and for two penalty strokes, you will have the additional option of taking relief outside the bunker by dropping a ball back on the line from the hole through where your ball was at rest in the bunker. Phew.

We've all been there - around 75 yards out and faced with a tricky little pitch shot towards a tight pin; danger over the back and a tier just before the flag that will take anything short down to the front edge.

The first stage in overcoming potential card wreckers like this is knowing how far you hit a full shot with each of your wedges. The second is having three different distances that you can comfortably hit with each, adding to your options when faced with this scenario.

Mizuno S18

One wedge which will offer you the versatility required for absolute precision in distance control is Mizuno's S18. What we love most about the S18 is its thicker topline on the higher lofts, which has been designed to help with a common problem for amateur golfers - mishitting the sweet spot high on the face with shorter shots. This topline will provide more consistent spin rates for better control when attacking the flag.

We've all been there - around 75 yards out and faced with a tricky little pitch shot towards a tight pin; danger over the back and a tier just before the flag that will take anything short down to the front edge.

The first stage in overcoming potential card wreckers like this is knowing how far you hit a full shot with each of your wedges. The second is having three different distances that you can comfortably hit with each, adding to your options when faced with this scenario.

Mizuno S18

One wedge which will offer you the versatility required for absolute precision in distance control is Mizuno's S18. What we love most about the S18 is its thicker topline on the higher lofts, which has been designed to help with a common problem for amateur golfers - mishitting the sweet spot high on the face with shorter shots. This topline will provide more consistent spin rates for better control when attacking the flag.

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